The New York University women's volleyball team opened up play at the 2018 University Athletic Association (UAA) Championship, which is being held on Friday and Saturday, November 2 and 3, at the University of Rochester in Rochester, NY.

NYU (18-15), seeded sixth, fell to third-seeded Washington University in St. Louis in straight sets (25-19, 25-21, 25-9) in the opening round. The Violets then took on seventh-seeded University of Rochester in the consolation bracket and defeated the host Yellowjackets in five sets 25-16, 25-20, 24-26, 24-26, 15-11. 

In the opening match, WashU (23-6) and NYU traded points early in the first set before a 7-1 Bears' run broke a 9-9 tie and gave them a six-point lead. From there, the Bears remained in control, leading by as many as nine before ultimately winning the frame by six.

The Bears scored four of the first five points in the second set, but NYU was able to close the margin to one, 11-10. The frame remained close, but WashU scored three-straight points wafter leading 15-14 and eventually held on to win by four.

In the third set, NYU led 4-2 and 6-4 before the Bears took over. WashU scored five-straight points as part of a 16-3 run en route to the match-clinching victory.

Nazzerine Waldon led the Violets wih seven kills and seven digs. Gretchen Kincade and Caroline Rapp each had six kills.

Despite falling behind 4-1 to begin the second match, the Violets rebounded to tie the score at 7-7 before going on a 4-0 run to take the lead for good.

In the second set, NYU led early but Rochester came back to tie the score at 19-19. At that point, a Waldon kill sparked another 4-0 run as NYU went on to the second-set win.

In the third set, NYU was on the brink of winning the match, leading 24-23. However, a Rochester kill and two Violet attack errors sent the match to a fourth set.

The Yellowjackets kept the momentum in the fourth set, racing out to a 10-4 lead. The Violets made a valiant effort to get back into the set, responding with an 8-0 run. Rochester regained a four-point advantage, 23-19, but a late streak by the Violets tied the game 24-24. However, the rally fell short as a pair of Rochester kills knotted the match at two sets each.  

In the deciding fifth set, NYU led 10-7 before Rochester came back to tie at 10-10. Rapp followed with a kill and the Violets never trailed again.

"We came out and established our game plan very effectively and efficiently," said Head Coach Andrew Brown. "After the second set, Rochester made some player adjustments and showed us a new style of volleyball. The big adjustment from the third and fourth sets was our aggressive attacks at the end of the fifth set. We went out there and finished what we started. This match was a great example of the grit and fight our team has been playing with in October and into November."

Rapp led the way with 13 kills, while Waldon and Abby Ausmus each had 12. Jacqueline Kupeli had a team-high 22 digs.

The Violets complete play at the UAA Championship when they face eighth-seeded Brandeis University in the fifth-place match on Saturday at 10:00am.  
 
"Tomorrow is a great opportunity for our players to continue to climb in this prestigious tournament," Brown concluded.